Robert I. Palmer, Sr., 32°, K.C.C.H.
1820 Capitol Avenue, Cheyenne, Wyoming 82001-4530

The Masonic Temple in Cheyenne has several outstanding stained-glass windows.

The Masonic Temple in Cheyenne, Wyoming, stands at the corner of 19th Street and Capitol Avenue, one of the most prominent of the downtown intersections. The three-story sandstone edifice (photo next page) was built as a Scottish Rite Temple, and Grand Master Charles Townsend dedicated its cornerstone on June 6, 1901, and Grand Master Bryce Lundell rededicated it on June 6, 2001. The Temple contains four large Lodge rooms, several meeting and committee rooms, a gymnasium, a large dining room, and several other smaller rooms for organizations, storage, and conferences. The smallest of the Lodge rooms is known as the Memorial Room, and it was in there, at the building of the Temple, that Masons were invited to place memorial stained-glass windows in memory of deceased family members.

The building was gutted by fire in 1903 but carefully rebuilt very nearly to its original configuration. The stained-glass windows in the Memorial Room were repaired or replaced, and others were added over the years. (See the illustrations on the inside front and back covers of this issue.)

The smaller windows memorialize Clarence W. and Augusta H. Hicks, and the large windows are in memory of Edward "Smiley" White (right), Arthur Richardson, Harry Keith Schnitger, Genevieve Hoyt, Abraham Idleman, and Eliza A. Keefe, the latter donated by her sons. All were adorned with Masonic insignia, including Scottish Rite and York Rite emblems.

Over the years, the lapse of time, the devastations of weather, and the ruthless hand of use caused the windows to sag and buckle. In the 1980s, the Masonic Building Association budgeted money for necessary repairs to the edifice. The Grand Secretary General of the Orient of Wyoming, Ill. Eldon D. Triggs, Sr., 33°, recommended repair of the windows and proposed they be protected by Plexiglas©, both inside and outside, to prevent the deterioration they experienced in the past.

The Masonic Temple in Cheyenne, Wyoming, was built in 1901 and rededicated in 2001. It has been on the National Register of Historical Buildings for more than 20 years.

The windows were repaired and now appear in the Memorial Room in very nearly their original condition. The cost was well in excess of $10,000 for the restoration, but the windows will continue to adorn the Masonic Temple for at least another century. The building has been on the National Register of Historical Buildings for over 20 years.

The Masons of Cheyenne were indeed fortunate to have such a magnificently adorned structure provided to them by the generations of Masons who preceded them. It is a proud legacy of Cheyenne's Masonic past and an important asset for our Masonic future.

A new project, called "Windows To Our Heritage" (Journal, Feb. 2003, pp. 30-31), is dedicated to locating, cataloging, and restoring or protecting stained-glass windows in Masonic Temples. For more information, please write: Allen Carrier, Michael Darling & Associates Communications, 1400 20th St., Ste. 504, NW, Washington, D.C. 20036; call 202-232-4039; fax 202-232-4089; or e-mail mdarlingbox@aol.com

Robert I. Palmer, Sr. is a Past Venerable Master of the Cheyenne, Wyoming, Scottish Rite Bodies, the York Rite, and a Past Master of Acacia No. 11 in Cheyenne. He is active in V.F.W., American Legion, and Wyoming Veterans' Affairs Commission.